Men’s basketball: Olivet comes from behind to beat Albion, 62-58

ALBION, Mich. – Senior Jordan Union made two steals in the final minute to set-up the go-ahead basket and game-clinching free throws, as the Olivet College men's basketball team rallied from an eight-point deficit in the second half to stun Albion College, 62-58, in a Michigan Intercollegiate Athletic Association (MIAA) contest tonight at Kresge Gymnasium in Albion.

The Comets trailed by eight points on four occasions in the second half, with the last time being 52-44, at the 11:19 mark. Olivet went on a 10-0 run, capped by a three-pointer by Union, to take a 54-52 lead. From there, the teams traded baskets to create three tied scores 54-54, 56-56 and 58-58. In the final minute of the game, Union had a steal which then led to the go-ahead basket by senior DeOndre Callahan.

The Britons missed a go-ahead three-pointer but they grabbed the offensive rebound. With 16 seconds left, Union picked off another Albion pass for a steal. After two Briton fouls were called to put the Comets in the bonus, freshman Jake Zielinski made two free throws with 9.5 seconds remaining to seal Olivet's come-from-behind victory.

There was not a lot of scoring in the first six minutes of the game, as the score was tied 6-6 at the 14:07 mark. Callahan made a layup and a three-pointer to put the Comets ahead 11-6 with 11:27 left in the first half. Olivet led one more time by five points, 14-9, before the Britons scored six straight points for a 15-14 lead at the 7:16 mark.

The Comets took the lead back, 16-15, on layup by Union. Albion responded with a 5-0 run to gain a 20-16 lead. Olivet countered with a 6-0 run to go up 22-20 with 3:51 remaining until halftime. The Britons surged ahead on a three-pointer, 23-22.The Comets grabbed the lead back 24-23 after freshman Shaun McKinney drained two free throws.

Albion came right back with an old-fashioned three-point play for a 26-24 lead. Union then drained two free throws to knot the score one more time at 26-26 at the 2:22 mark. The Britons put the next eight points on the scoreboard for either team's largest lead of the half, 34-27. Olivet scored a basket to make the 34-28 at the break.

For the game, the Comets shot 38.6 percent from the floor to 36.2 percent for Albion. Both teams made seven three-pointers, while Olivet made 11 free throws to nine for the Britons. Albion did out-rebound the Comets, 47-27, including a 22-10 advantage on the offensive glass.

Union and Zielinski each scored 16 points to lead the Comets. Callahan contributed 13 points. Sophomore R.J. Haas scored nine points and grabbed a team-leading six rebounds.

Zach Hurth led the Britons with 11 points, while Travell Oakes scored 10. Jordan Herron finished with a game-high 11 rebounds.

Olivet returns to the court Saturday with a 3 p.m. game at Calvin College.